As Facebook, Twitter and other social networking websites become a part of our daily life, great quantities of information, both public and private, are being housed on these sites. Inevitably, this information has begun to show up in court. The upcoming Canadian Bar Association conference (Aug. 12-14) “Snakes in the Grass: Ethical Issues in the Information Age” will explore the growing trend of social media use in the courtroom. How will the introduction of this new technology affect publication bans, court decorum, production of evidence and the administration of justice?

A recent Ontario Court of Justice decision has highlighted what defence lawyers say is an ongoing access to justice issue in the province, as Legal Aid Ontario continues to decline funding in criminal cases where a jail term may not be imposed.

Despite widespread belief that dismissed employees are entitled to a "package," the law is clear that employers can provide working notice of dismissal. It was widely accepted that individuals who had been given working notice of dismissal had an obligation to continue to carry out their duties throughout the notice period, and that if they did not, they lost their right to sue for wrongful dismissal. A recent decision of the British Columbia Court of Appeal calls that view into question.

In the case of same-sex couples who live abroad but who married here and want to obtain Canadian divorces, the federal government's rapid about-face on Jan. 13 also illustrates that, sometimes, the court of public opinion is the highest court in the land.